title: Kicking against the pricks: vaccine sceptics have a different social orientation.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  In any country, part of the population is sceptical about the utility of vaccination. To develop successful vaccination programmes, it is important to study and understand the defining characteristics of vaccine sceptics. Research till now mainly focused either on the underlying motives of vaccine refusal, or on socio-demographic differences between vaccine sceptics and non-sceptics. It remained till now unexplored whether both groups differ in terms of basic psychological dispositions.
  
  
  METHODS
  We held a population survey in a representative sample of the population in Flanders, Belgium (N = 1050), in which we investigated whether respondents' attitude to vaccination was associated with their basic disposition toward other community members or society in general, as measured by the Triandis and Gelfand social orientation scale.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We found that sceptics and non-sceptics have a different social orientation, even when several variables are controlled for. More specifically, vaccine sceptics scored significantly lower on both horizontal individualism and horizontal collectivism, indicating a lower disposition to see others as equals.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These findings need confirmation in the context of different countries. Such insights can be valuable to optimize the design of effective communication strategies on vaccination programmes.
authors.affiliation: 1 Centre for Health Economics Research and Modelling Infectious Diseases, Vaccine and Infectious Disease Institute, University of Antwerp, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium.
authors.forename: Jeroen
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Luyten
authors.forename: Pieter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Desmet
authors.forename: Veronica
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Dorgali
authors.forename: Niel
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Hens
authors.forename: Philippe
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Beutels
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001294:Attitude to Health; D001530:Belgium; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007206:Individuality; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012938:Social Perception; D012945:Social Values; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014611:Vaccination / Q000523:psychology*